Pneumatically-operated musical instrument having hammers.



A. ZOLLINGER.

PNEUMATICALLY OPERATED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT HAVING HAMMERS.

7 APPLICATION FILED JUNE 25. I915.

' 1,295,668; Patented Feb. 25, 1919.

A TTOR/VE. Y

ADALBER'I ZOLLINGER, 0F LEIPZIGr-EUTRITZSCH, GERMANY.

IPNEUMA'IICALLY-OPERATED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT HAVING HAMMERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 25, 1919.

Application filed June 25, 1915. Serial No. 36,184.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ADALBERT ZOLLINGER, a subject of the German Emperor, and resident of Leipzig-Eutritzsch, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pneumatically-Operated Musical Instruments Having Hammers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to pneumaticallyoperated musical instruments in which the sound is produced by the action of hammers, such as for instance pneumatically-actuated pianos. The object of my invention is to provide means for obtaining perfect tone modulation, that is to say, means whereby a note may be struck either strongly or softly, with any desired gradation of loudness, thus simulating or reproducing faithfully the tone quality obtained by a skilled performer or virtuoso. The perforated music sheet or roll employed by me diifers from the usual ones in that where the improved tone modulation is desired, there are two slots or perforations for each note, one in advance of the other, and the principle of operation is as follows: When the first of these slots or perforations comes into operation (by registering with a corresponding hole of the tracker bar), the hammer is caused to move toward the string or other part which it is adapted to strike, this movement being relatively slow and corresponding in function, not to the striking movement'produced by the action, but rather to the adjustment produced in ordinary pianos by the shifting of the hammer-rest rail. This first slot therefore determines the distance which the hammer will have to travel from the beginning of its real operative or sound-producing stroke to its actual engagement with the string or other sounding device. The active or sound-producing stroke of the hammer occurs when the second slot comes into opera tive position. My invention therefore differs materially from customary structures employing pneumatically actuated hammers, in that the length of the active hammer-stroke is varied by pneumatic action, to any dimension or value within certain limits.

A particular embodiment of my invention is illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a vertical section showing the hammer of a musical instrument in connection with my improved pneumatic actuating device; 1

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the perforated music sheet; and

Fig. 8 is a sectional view of the tracker bar and of the music sheet.

The music sheet or music roll a shown in Fig. 2, has two slots or perforations b, 0 for most of the notes, although (as exemplified at the center ofthe sheet) a single slot 0 may occasionally be employed for a note. Whenever a pair of slots 6, 0 is employed in con unction with a note, the slot 6 is in advance of the corresponding slot 0, that is to say, to the right thereof when, as assumed and usual, the sheet a travels from left to right during the playing of the instrument. Fig. 2 also shows that the relative lengths of the slots 6, 0 of the same pair varies considerably, the slot 6 being longer than the slot 0 in some cases, and shorter in others. The slots 7), 0 of the same pair are out of longitudinal alinement, and preferably all the slots 6 are on the same side of the respective slots 0, thus the drawing shows the slots 6 above the respective slots 0, or nearer what in Fig. 2 is the upper edge of the sheet 0,; Preferably also, each slot 6 ends in transverse alinement with the beginning of the corresponding slot 0, that is, in the construction shown, the left-hand end of each slot 6 is in transverse alinement with the right-hand end of the corresponding slot 0. -The slots 0 are those which cause the striking or sound-producing movement of the hammer t, and these slots therefore have a function. somewhat analogous to that of the perforations in the well-known music sheets or music rolls used in the ordinary player-pianos or piano-players. The slots 6, however, serve to vary the position of the hammers at the beginning of the active or sound-producing stroke, and thus to secure a very fine tone-modulation.

The tracker bar is provided with holes adapted to register with the perforations or slots 6, c of the music sheet a, and those holes which are adapted for registry with the slots b are connected permanently by means of well-known characters, with channels or ducts 6, while from each of the holes adapted for registry with the slots 0, a per manent connection is made to a channel or duct 9. The channel e leads to one surface of aidiaphragm f, the other face of which is exposed to the pressure or rather suction conditions normally prevailing in a cham- 7 bar 2'. The diaphragm 7 controls the position of a double valve 5/, the lower member of which controls the connection of the chamber 2' with a channel h, while the upper member of the valve 9 controls the connection of the channel 72. with the atmosphere. In the normal position (illustrated by Fig. 1) the channel It communicates with the chamber 2' but not with the atmosphere. This channel 71. leads to one side of a diaphragm k the other side of which is exposed to the pressure or rather suction preva1ling in a chamber m. This diaphragm controls the position of a valve Z, which normally closes the connection of a channel 1' with said chamber m, and places said channel in communication with the atmosphere as shown. Normally, the channel 9 is in communication with another channel .8, but this communication is controlled by a valve 0 con trolled by a diaphragm 19, one f'aceof which is exposed to the pressure or rather suction prevailing in a chamber a. In its normal position, the valve 0 also closes the connection between the chamber n and the channel 8. The latter communicates permanently with the interior of the bellows or motor pneumatic (Z arranged to operate the corresponding hammer 25 through any suitable intermediate mechanism or action. The channel 9 leads to the face of the diaphragm p opposite to that exposed to the suction in chamber a. It will be understood that a set of devices and channels such as shown in Fig. 1 is provided for each of the hammers t.

The chambers m and 7% are connected with suitable devices (not shown) of well-known character for producing the desired pressure conditions, that is to say, the difference be tween atmospheric pressure and the pres.- sure (suction) prevailing in chamber n will be greater than the difference between atmospheric pressure and the pressure (suction) prevailing in chamber m. The manner.

of producing suction inchamber i is immaterial to my invention, but I have indicated a bleeding hole leading from the chamber m to the channel it so that in the normal position (Fig. 1) the suction or degree of vacuum will be the same in the two Cha bers m and i.

It will be obvious that if the interior of the bellows or motor pneumatic (Z is connected with the chamber a in which strong .suctron prevails, the collapse of said bellows will be relatively quick, to cause the hammer t to strike the corresponding string. If,

however, connection is made from the interior of the bellows (Z to the chamber we having relatively weak suction, the collapse of the bellows willbe correspondingly slow and will not produce an active, sound-producing stroke of the hammer, but simply a gradual movement or adjustment of said hammer towardthe string,

In detail, the operation is as follows: For the Sake of simplicity, let us first consider the exceptional case represented at the central portion of Fig. '2, where instead of a pair of slots Z), 0, there is a single slot 0 for a certain note. The normal position of the several valves and diaphragms, which is shown in Fig. '1, corresponds to the condition when none of the perforations Z) or c communicate with any of the channels 0 or 9 respectively. Now, suppose that the single slot 0 referred to above, comes into registry with the corresponding hole of the tracker bar, so that atmospheric air may enter the respective channel Q and thus cause or allow the diaphragm p to move inward or upward. This raises the valve 0 and connects the interior of the suction chamber a with the channel 8, and therefore with the interior of the bellows d, at the same time, the connection of the channel 8 with the channel 9 and with the out-side air is interrupted by the raised valve 0. The strong suctionexisting in chamber a will then cause a quick collapse of the bellows (Z, so that the hammer I? will strike with full force, the active stroke of the hammer in this case having its maxi mum length, since such active stroke starts from the normal hammer position shown in Fig. 1.

Now let us consider the case (as with the majority of notes) where a pair of perforations or slots 7), 0 corresponds to the particular note. Since the slot 6 of each pair is in advance of the slot 0, it follows that the slot 7) will reach its active position first, allowing atmospheric air to rush into the corresponding channel 6 and raise the diaphragm f. This brings the double valve 5/ into its upper position, closing the connection of the chamber 71 with the channel h, and connecting the latter with thc'outside air. The air rushing into channel 71. will lift the diaphragm Z" and valve Z. so that channel 1 which until then was open to the outside air, is disconnected from the outside air and placed in communication with the chamber m, in which, as stated above, a relatively moderate vacuum 01- suction is maintained. This suction will be communicated through the communicating channels 7 and s (the valve 0 still being in its zlowerposition) to the interior of the bellows (Z and cause the latterto collapse, but this movement will be relatively slow, and instead of causing thehammer 25' to strike its string, will simply move or adjust the hammer gradually toward the string (toward the right in Fig. 1). As soon as the left-hand end of the slot (7 is reached, this adjusting motion will stop.

and at the same time the right h-and end of the slot 0 of the same pair will .open thc corresponding channel q to the outside air. The clcsing of the channel c .by the solid portion of the music sheet covering thecorresponding hole of the tracker bar, will cause the. valves 9, Z and the diaphragms f, 70 to resume the normal position shown in Fig. 1, and the connection of the channel 9 with the outside air will cause the bellows d to collapse quickly and the hammer t to strike, in the manner set forth above, with this exception however, that the active or sound-producing stroke of the hammer in this case will not start from the hammer position shown in Fig. 1, but from a position nearer the string. The length of the active hammer stroke will therefore be less than its maximum length, and the sound produced will be correspondingly softer. Now, it will. be obvious that according to greater or smaller length of the slot 5, the hammer 2? will be nearer to or farther from the string at the moment the active or sound-producing stroke begins, and the sound will be softer or louder accordingly. A very fine shading of expression or tone-modulation can thus be obtained, and it will be noticed particularly that this elfeet is obtained for each note individually, so that it is possible, say in playing a chord, to emphasize some notes by playing them with a loud effect, while the other notes of the chord are played more softly. It will also be obvious that my invention provides a practically infinite range of gradation in softness or loudness of playing, up to the maximum corresponding to the case in which there is no slot 6 for a particular note.

The varying length of the slots 0 simply determines the relative length of time during which a note is held, or in other words it determines the duration of the sound produced, while the strength or loudness of the sounds decreases with the length of the slot 5 employed.

My invention therefore supplies relatively simple means for obtaining a tone-modulation so delicate as to reproduce faithfully the playing of artistic performers.

While I have described a preferred and satisfactory embodiment of my invention. I desire it to be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of this invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a musical instrument of the class described, a. hammer for striking a sound-producing element, pneumatic means for moving said hammer, a device for causing said pneumatic means to act with a movement too slow to cause the hammer to strike but sufficient to adjust the position of the hammer, and another device for causing the same pneumatic means to act quickly so as to give the hammer an active stroke.

2. In a musical instrument of the class described, a hammer for striking a sound-producing element, pneumatic means for moving said hammer toward its striking position, a pneumatic chamber of relatively low power adapted for connection with said pneumatic means to cause a relatively slow adjusting movement of the hammer toward its striking position, and a pneumatic chamber of relatively high power likewise adapted for connection with said pneumatic means, to cause the latter to act quickly so as to produce an active stroke of the hammer. 1

3. In a musical instrument of the class described, a hammer for striking a sound-producing element, pneumatic means for moving said hammer toward its striking position, a pneumatic chamber of relatively low power adapted for connection with said pneumatic means to cause a relatively slow adjusting movement of the hammer toward its striking position, and a pneumatic chamber of relatively high power likewise adapted for connection with said pneumatic means, to cause the latter to act quickly so as to produce an active stroke of the hammer, a tracker bar having openings controlling the connection of said pneumatic means with the said pneumatic chambers, and a music sheet having pairs of perforations, one perforation of each pair being located in advance of the other and adapted to register with an opening of the tracker bar controlling the low-power connection of a certain hammer, the other perforation of such pair being adapted to register with that opening of the tracker bar which controls the high-power connection of the same hammer.

4. In a musical instrument of the class described, a hammer for striking a sound-pro ducing element, pneumatic means for moving said hammer toward its striking position, a pneumatic chamber of relatively low power adapted for connection with said pneumatic means to cause a relatively slow adjusting movement of the hammer toward its striking position, and a pneumatic chamber of rela tively high power likewise adapted for con ncction with said pneumatic means, to cause the latter to act quickly so as to produce an active stroke of the hammer, a tracker bar having openings controlling the connection of said pneumatic means with said pneumatic chambers, and a music sheet having pairs of perforations, one perforation of each pair being located in advance and laterally of the other, the rear end of the leading perforation being approximately in transverse alinement with the front end of the second perforation of the same pair, said leading perforation being adapted to register with an opening of the tracker bar controlling the low-power connection of a certain hammer, the other perforation of such pair being adapted to register with that opening of the tracker'bar which controls the high-power described, hammers, pneumatic means for operating each of said hammers, a plurality of suction chambers of different power adapted to be put into communication with said pneumatic means, and connecting means for placing said suction chambers successively into communication with said pneumatic means, a tracker bar, a roll of music adapted to pass in contact with said tracker bar, said roll of music having a plurality of slots therein for the same tone, the passage of said slots over said tracker bar causing the aforesaid connecting means to operate to successively place the said pneumatic means into communication, first with a low power suction chamber, and then with the high power suction chamber.

6. In a musical instrument of the class described, hammers, pneumatic means for operating each ,of said hammers, a plurality of suction chambers adapted to be put into communication with said pneumatic means, and connecting means for placing said suction chambers successively -into communication with said pneumatic means, a tracker bar, a roll of music adapted to be laid over said tracker bar, said roll of music having a plurality of slots therein for each tone, the passage of said slots over said tracker bar causing the aforesaid connecting means to operate to successively place the said pneumatic means ponies or this patent may be obtains for into communication with the aforesaid suc tion chan'lbers, said suction chambers having rarefactions of different strengths therein, and said slots being of varying length.

7. In a musical instrument of the class described, a plurality of independent hammers for striking sound-producing elements, individual pneumatic means for operating the several hammers, and controlling means, one for each of said individual pneumatic means, adapted to cause the respective pneumatic means to. give the corresponding hammers a plurality of successive impulses, the last of which causes the respective hammer to strike.

8. vIn musical instrument of the class described, a hammer for striking a sound-producing element, means for giving said hammer a slow adjusting movement toward its striking position, and means for giving said hammer an active stroke at diiierent points of its adjusting movement, whereby the length of the adjusting stroke may be varied.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. Y

ADALBERT ZQLLINGER.

give cents each, by addressing the Commissioner or lfatents, Washington, D. 0. i 

